The Predator Hunters Won't All Be CG Promises Director

Last year, director Shane Black explained that they were making a number of enhancements and improvements to the Predator suit, revealing in an interview that there will be a lot of upgrades to the traditional "Predator technology." The director wouldn't delve into specifics, but there were also early rumors that part of the new suit will be enhanced with CGI. Then news come from a merchandising convention claiming that the alien Predator hunters, known as Yautja or Hish-Qu-Ten, would be all CG with actors performing them via motion capture. But that may not actually be the case. The director took to social media over the weekend to shoot down rumors of an all CGI-enhanced suit, while also addressing the new release date. Here's what he had to say about the suit, which will be practical and feature a man in costume.

"I am standing on set next to a 7-foot tall gentleman in a Predator suit so no, it is not all CGI."

The director did state that it's not "all CGI," so that could mean there may be CGI enhancements, although fans will see the practical suit in the movie, worn by an actor who hasn't been identified at this time. We also reported this weekend that the studio handed out a new Predator release date, with the movie moving from February 9, 2018 to March 2, 2018. While the shift may not seem significant, it could greatly increase its chances at a bigger box office debut. Here's what the director had to say about why he supports the release date shift, in response to a fan on Twitter.

"In truth, I endorsed this entirely. It's a great thing, also, a bit of a relief not to open against Marvel's Black Panther in Feb."

In its old release date, this Predator sequel wouldn't actually open against Black Panther, but it was set to arrive one week before Black Panther debuted on February 16. Still, there was also plenty of competition in the old February 9 date, with the movie facing Universal's Fifty Shades Freed, the final installment of the Fifty Shades trilogy, Columbia's Peter Rabbit and an untitled project from the Warner Animation Group. After The Predator vacated its release date, the studio pushed The Maze Runner: The Death Cure from January 12, 2018 to February 9, 2018. It remains to be seen how much longer the movie will be filming for, but now at least they have a bit more time to finish this sequel.

The studio still hasn't released an official synopsis, but star Sterling K. Brown recently said the script has a "wicked sense of humor," teasing that writer-director Shane Black has a very different take when compared to the original Predator movie. While many fans were hoping original Predator star Arnold Schwarzenegger would return as Dutch, a report surfaced that the actor turned down the project because he didn't like Shane Black's script, which Black co-wrote with Fred Dekker. Still, the filmmaker did manage to put together an impressive cast.

The cast is lead by Boyd Holbrook, who is playing an ex-Marine that leads a team of soldiers in a new mission. The cast also includes Jacob Tremblay, Keegan-Michael Key, Trevante Rhodes, Thomas Jane, Alfie Allen, Yvonne Strahovski, Olivia Munn, Sterling K. Brown and the most recent casting addition, Edward James Olmos, whose character is believed to be connected to Boyd Holbrook's character in some way. Take a look at Shane Black's tweets from The Predator below.

I am standing on set next to a 7-foot tall gentleman in a Predator suit -- so no, it is not all CGI.